when does it get better | ADHD Information

My six year old has also been on Strattera for about five months and has recently been extremely moody - borderline rage(!). Of course, I get the brunt of it and dread when he gets off the bus. (What version of my child will I see??) He's been on 25mg but the doctor just convinced me to go to 18gm and see if that helps.
    Good luck!

AndreaFred, one of the major side effects of Strattera is mood swings.  If your son is moody to th point of rage, I'd seriously considering taking him off Strattera and finding another med.  It's just not worth it.

 

The book Stopping ADHD has helped me get off meds.  I agree that it sounds like strattera may not be the right med for your daughter. I also agree that if you are seeing a negative effect with a med it is not a good idea to increase the dose. I wish I had spoken up more and refused because we have been through that and it did not turn out well at all(with a different med) I would call your doctor and ask that they try something else. Try to keep in mind it is very much a trial and error process that can get disouraging sometimes, but it will be worth it when you find the right thing! Good luck!

Hey i am in the same boat, i don't think the meds my son is on is doing anything at all and as like your child my son is very moody to and will cry over nothing at all. I am seriously thinking about taking my son to a neuro at least then he will be put on the right meds and we will know if there is anything else wrong with him.

New here and I am glad to have found this site to get news and info about ADHD. I have a 9 yr old son who is on Concerta for about 3 years now.  When we started putting him on meds, it took several months to find the right combination and dosage.  He started on Strattera at first and it wasn't enough to control his behavior. Then our dr had him on Concerta 18 mg during the day and Strattera at night.  This gave him insomnia and somedays made him really moody.  Just a couple of months ago we asked our dr if it was ok to stop giving him the Strattera and increase Concerta to 36 mg. Looks like it is working.  We have our ups and downs... trying to cope with this disorder that we tend to lose our cool and start yelling at our poor son to calm down and behave.  We were reluctant at first to give him meds but we had no other choice for it was really affecting his grades in school and his social skills among his friends.  Now he is doing really well at school, but he still have his days.  Good luck in finding the right med...

 

 

we also had trouble with strattera...my happy go lucky son was moody and irritable on this med...we stopped and are now using a stimulant

I think strattera is probably not the med for your DD.  It's unique in the ADHD med field because it is not a stim, but it was originally developed as an antidepressant and can have side effects similar to those.  Not every med works for every child.  There are numerous other meds you can try, but if you've seen a negative impact at 10mg, increasing to 20 will probably not improve the situation.  It's one thing for a med to have limited effectiveness (see some improvement but not enough) and quite another to have a negative reaction.  Maybe they're thinking there has been no real change in her behavior, which doesn't sound like it's the case.  I'd ask to try something else.  Don't accept another increase.

Also, it typically takes 2-4 weeks to see the full results of Strattera, so that may be what your dr is waiting on, but honestly, after 1-2 weeks, you as a parent will know whether or not it is working for your child.  With a stim, you will see the results in days, not weeks, so you'd get more immediate ideas of how effective they are.

I have a great 6 year old spunky little girl, she starting taking 10mg of strattera Mar 16, she seems  worse  mad and moody, I went back to the doc's Mar 30, she has lost over 2 pounds he put her on 20mg after dinner, she has no desire to eat, and is very snappy, with everyone in the home,  I feel like there was better times more often before strattera, I only tried this route (strattera) because her behavior at school was affecting her marks,  and everyone was down on her,  all i want is for her to feel the satisfaction of a  great day where no one is constantly giving her consequences for her misunderstood behaviourI want the best for her,

What do you think........

Keep in mind that there are many other medications out there.  My 9 year old has tried all of them and Ritalin LA has proven the most effective.  Also, it takes quite some time to get the dosage level right.  A good physcian always starts off at the lowest dosage and increases it slowly, so be patient. 

I, too, found this site last night and joined and am glad I did.  I don't feel so alone going through this now.  I am surprised at how much I am reading of children taking a stimulant without an anti-depressant.  Stimulants make children moody and irritable.  Talk with her physician about this, her moodiness and irritablity.  My son also takes Celexa and it truly helps with this.  As a matter of fact this morning I realized I was out of Celexa and true to form, CJ was highly irritable today. 

Spackham,

I think you are more the exception than the norm with the anti-depressents...my son was quite irritable when he was taking meds in the ritalin family...ritalin , concerta, and focalin...the irriatability seemed to ease when we switched to Adderall...What is celexa similar to? Do you need it every day?...we gets some irritabiliy with the Adderall however, it seems to go away with a good meal

I do know some kids in our area who take prozac and a stimulant concerta primarily for anxiety

SPackham, you are the exception.  Most kids with pure ADHD don't need an SSRI like Celexa.  SSRIs are serious meds and do need to be taken every day (otherwise, the child will suffer withdrawal illness).  If a child can get away without them, all the better.  Celexa and other SSRIs like Prozac, Zoloft, Lexapro and Paxil are used to treat anxiety and depression (chronic irritability in a child is frequently a symptom of depression).  Furthermore, SSRIs can have serious side effects like suicidal ideation in children.  My own two children had manic reactions to SSRIs, which sent them down the bipolar path.  I'm not saying never to use SSRIs, but I would use them with caution and for debilitating anxiety and depression.  If stimulants are making your child moody and irritable, I'd look at different meds, different doses and whether you have the right dx.  SmallMom38808.7616435185